As a mother, I fully understand what it is to have sleepless nights. I do not cope well when I do not get enough sleep, which is why I have always ensured my children are in good routines, which I believe helped them sleep through the night from a young age. I certainly found the pressure when Ruben, my first was born, to get back into the life I had before him, but this had a knock on effect to us all.
I slowly realised that in fact, going out and about all day was not good for anyone. He would want to cluster feed all evening due to having little feeds throughout the day, I was exhausted by the evening as being on the go with a baby, all day takes it out of you.
It was a vicious cycle and at 6 weeks I couldn’t do it any more. After breaking down, I spoke with Wendy a maternity nurse who gave me some really good advice on how a routine in fact helps you and your baby. I found that when Ruben slept, I could do all the jobs I couldn’t before, he would sleep for 4 hours in total throughout the day.
When he was awake I found I had more energy to go to groups with him as I wasn’t so exhausted, making me feel like a ‘good mummy’. I carried the routine on with my other two children as I knew I couldn’t work or function properly if I didn’t install some simple strategies into our lives.
